


District of Nine

by portfolios



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: F/M, K-pop References
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-25
Updated: 2018-04-28
Packaged: 2019-04-28 00:15:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14437293
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/portfolios/pseuds/portfolios
Summary: I have regretted, so many times, about my decision to become the caretaker of that house.





	1. Prologue

Having divorced parents isn't the best thing in the world, especially if you're in high school.

It's not an especially sensitive topic to talk about with friends, but it's not a comfortable one. I'd rather argue about dogs or cats than freely speak about how my parents are separated.

I live with my mom and one younger sibling named Dawon. I actually used to have three other siblings (including Dawon), but upon agreement between my mom and dad, they split them up, which I found pretty cruel.

On the bright side, he nor I was alone. On the darker side, we weren't all together like we used to be. Hell, us siblings even promised to stick with one another like peas in a pod until we have our own significant other to live with.

Okay. Living with my mom isn't  _too_  bad...

But the fact that my mom was STILL on a hunt for a job wasn't very encouraging. We were surviving off of our own savings and bank account we originally were going to use for me and Dawon's college fees. It was a waste.

My dad was kind enough (unlike my stoic mom) to gift us some money since he knew my mom would have difficulty finding a job (she ironically wasn't the best student in school).

I wish my mom would appreciate his generosity more instead of his status in working. Then maybe we'd have a happy, rejoicing family of seven.

I really hate my mom for being unemployed. We're standing dangerously close to the edge right now.

Dawon is too young to get a job. I am also too young to be a part-time worker, although I do in fact know some people that have broken that rule and chosen to work at night just for some extra cash. Not because they truly needed it.

After I found that it would probably take more than a month for my mom to find a decent job that pays a fair amount of money, it would most likely be better if I just took up some simple tasks around the neighborhood, like mowing the lawn or taking out the trash.

I was even willing to scoop up poop from dogs for 50 cents!

Yeah, I was that desperate. I didn't want to continue being picked on at school because of being financially unstable along with having only a mom and a brother. It was not only embarrassing, but a reminder that my life wouldn't be the same again.

I snapped out of my thoughts once I received a call from a friend.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Y/N! It's me, your one and only, Yoon Minyoung!" My friend chirped.

I rolled my eyes but smiled anyway. I could always count on her to cheer me up. "So, what do you want?" I asked.

"Hey, hey," She began in a quiet voice. I had to strain to hear her.

"Stop speaking so quietly," I said. "I can barely hear you!" I exasperately exclaimed.

"Sorry! But this is a secret. I'm going over to a competition for a month- yeah, I know. It's super long. My parents don't know about it. If they did, they would literally  _kill_ me."

"And...?" I waved my hand in the air. This was no surprise for me. Minyoung was notorious in school for doing these kinds of acts and rebelling against her parents. Although I didn't necessarily approve of her actions, I knew I couldn't stop her. Once she makes up her mind to do something, absolutely  **no one** can stop her from doing it.

Minyoung hesitantly replied, "Well, my parents want me to work at their friend's house this month. And dude, I don't want to spend the last month of summer at a guy's house for a month and literally  _live_ in there and clean it! You know very well I can't do stuff like that."

I chuckled into the phone. "Are you here to rant to me about your problems?" I shook my head. Minyoung's parents always wanted their child to participate in tasks like those. They wanted a productive child, but unfortunately for them, they gave birth to a daughter who was hyperactive and very troublesome. It was entertaining to say the least.

"No. Sorry, Y/N! I really want to enter the competition with some friends. It's a video game competition and you  _know_ I'm in love with games. My parents' friend doesn't know how I look like because I've never met them. He's apparently a very very old friend of theirs that they don't talk to a lot, so it won't be suspicious if you replace me!" She explained in a desperate voice.

I was taken aback. What?! Me, substitute for her in a job she was supposed to do? "Do I get paid?" I questioned meekly. Minyoung answered quickly, "Yep! It's really high. 500 dollars I think. But he has nine adopted kids... Yeah, I'm  _never_ going to spend even an hour there with nine kids." I frowned. The pay was great, but having to literally live in that house and take care of it was going to be a huge pain.

"Is he leaving for vacation or something?" I asked.

"Yeah, apparently. He's going with his wife somewhere for their anniversary. Come on, Y/N.  _Please?_ I'll bake you cookies if you do it!" She pleaded.

I hummed thoughtfully. The money I would earn from that benefited me, but I didn't know if my mom would approve... "I would like to. But are the kids boys or girls?" If they were boys, they would be quite difficult to handle, as I don't know pretty much anything about them besides the fact they like gaming and outside sports (learned from my brother).

"I think toddler girls? I don't remember what my parents said. Anyway, thank you so much! I don't know what I'd do without you. You're my savior. Remember to pretend to be me!" Minyoung giggled. "Of course, of course. I'll get permission from my mom," I said into the phone. "Love ya!" She sang. "Love ya," I echoed before hanging up.

What had I gotten myself into?


	2. The Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "The door was whipped open, and in front of me stood nine grown boys."

The next morning, my mom had left the house to find work, and my brother was sound asleep. I didn't know what I'd tell them. My mom might congratulate me on finding a job, but she might also get mad at me for deciding something on my own without her consent.

Dawon...

He'll just be sad. I bet he'll be lonely all the time at home without me to wake him up or play with him when he's bored. I would definitely miss his chatty days and when he would spill secrets he had gotten from his friends (he wasn't very trustworthy or secretive). I wonder if the toddlers at that house would be as playful and energetic as Dawon.

At that moment, I received a text message. I opened the chatroom up.

 

 **minyoung:**  
here's the address!  
_1234 address street_

 **me:**  
thanks...  
can you text me the phone number?

 **minyoung:  
** yup! brb.. gotta ask my mom.

 **minyoung:**  
k! back. it's:  
_123-456-7890_

 **me:  
** thanks. i'll text you once i get the job.

 

Minyoung concluded the brief conversation with a goodbye and a heart emoji. I sighed. Would it really be okay to accept the job without my mom's permission? After a few seconds of contemplating the answer to that, I simply shrugged. "It should be fine. I'll tell her I'm going to some camp or something..." I didn't know why I was so conscious of my mom. She was at this stage where she was sensitive to nearly everything, and might even go berserk. I didn't want to witness that side of her, so I decided on keeping it a secret. It would be the best, anyway. Then she wouldn't have to concern herself over me. After all, I wasn't a child anymore.

I did settle on telling everything to my brother, however. He was more understanding than my mom, and would probably let me go and keep my secret better than anyone else. I exhaled heavily. What if he told her...? I shrugged that thought off. I couldn't doubt myself at this point.

I called the phone number that Minyoung had sent me. It rang several times, and I was worried no one would pick up. My heart leaped to my throat when a deep voice murmured into the phone. "Hello?" The lowness of the voice threw me off guard- I never could've imagined the owner of the house having such a husky voice. It was pleasant against the ears, but it was definitely unique. "H-Hi! Yes. Um... Are you Minyo- I mean,  _my_ dad's friend?" I nearly forgot that I was posing as my friend. If I had accidentally revealed that I was her acquaintance, and not actually  _her,_ then she and I would both be in huge trouble... I thanked the heavens that I was able to remember that important fact without being too distracted by the male's voice on the other end.

"Eh?"

There was confusion prominent in his voice. I quirked a brow. Was something wrong?

I could hear static on the other end as someone shuffled the phone in their hands. "Hello?" I asked into the phone.

"Give me that," A different voice huffed. The deep-voiced male answered, "Okay..."

I stopped.  _Wait... Both of them have male voices. Who's the first person? If the first guy wasn't the dad, then who was it? A brother?_ I frowned.  _It can't be a son, right? Minyoung told me there were going to be **girls.** Not to mention  **toddlers.** I'm pretty sure girls don't have really deep voices, and I'm also pretty sure toddlers can't randomly pick up a phone and speak into the phone in a sophisticated voice. Ah, maybe I'm just being delusional._

"Hello!" A lively voice interrupted my chain of thoughts. The cheerful voice was so surprising that I almost dropped my phone. I fumbled my phone in my clumsy hands before I had the screen pressed against my ear. "Hi, are you my dad's friend?" I repeated. "Yes, I am! Are you Yoon Minyoung, perhaps? Your mom told me you would be calling to take care of my house while I'm on vacation," He said. I still wasn't very used to being called Minyoung, so I paused a bit and backtracked, reminding myself that I was replacing Minyoung so that I wouldn't reveal the secret.

"Yeah, yeah," I nodded my head. "The job is still open, right?" I clarified. "Yes! Can you come later today? I'm sure your mom gave you my address," He said.  _More like Minyoung did..._ I thought. But I wouldn't say that aloud. "Of course I can. Thank you!" I said before hanging up. I breathed in and out deeply.  _It's alright,_ I reassured myself.  _He doesn't know what Minyoung's personality is like. I can just be my normal self without worrying about having to act as crazy as her._ I chuckled to myself. If she heard me insult her, I would definitely be dead meat. Minyoung never liked anyone dissing her- if she did find out, then she would have her arms around the throat of whoever dared to speak ill of her. I laughed softly, remembering the day when she got suspended from school because she managed to get this one kid into a choke-hold. It would be hilarious to see me attempting to be as tough as her.

I wasn't the type of person to fight anyone, or get pissed off if someone talked behind my back. I guess you could say I was the polar opposite of Minyoung. I wonder if I would change when staying at that house... After all, I had developed my characteristics of politeness and calmness after being around my  _very_ mannerly mom for all my years. I blew out air from my mouth. I better pack up already and go to the house as soon as I can.

~

I finished packing up clothes into a fairly large suitcase. "Finally done!" I cheered to myself. I never really cared about my style, so I literally just threw in my gray hoodies and black leggings. That was basically all I had, anyway. I question myself almost every day of when I would ever wear a variety of colors. The answer is always left blank.

The inside of my typical black suitcase was a mess. The clothes weren't neatly folded like my mom taught me to do, and instead were crumbled up into balls, or sometimes just thrown inside without a care of its look. Yes, I may be "patient", but that does not mean I have to be organized. I knew that being so messy was a bad trait in most cases, but I didn't have the effort to try and change myself. I admit, I am awfully lazy. But if it doesn't impact anything except for my impressions on people, then I'm fine. I won't change it.

I checked the time.

 _11 AM._ It's not that late. I can cook lunch for his family to show how capable I am!

I zipped up the suitcase and hopped onto my feet. I better get a move on. Minyoung had told me that he and his wife would be leaving right after today. I hurried out of the room and out the front door with my heavy suitcase hauled behind me. It was a bright and sunny day. Definitely not suitable weather for thick, long-sleeved sweatshirts and jeans. I groaned as the sun cooked the top of my head and my shoulders. I was  _dying_ with the intense heat. I couldn't take it anymore and returned to my house to change out of my clothes and into an outfit that actually was meant for weather like this.

I exited the house once again. I sprinted to the taxi stop, waving at the road for any taxis to stop and let me in. But most of them disregarded and ignored my frantically waving hand. I rolled my eyes. How annoying. I had to wait in this ridiculously hot weather without any shade for ten minutes just to catch a taxi.

Once one actually stopped next to me, I immediately slipped inside. I gave the address to the driver, and he nodded at me. "It's pretty far from here, ma'am. It might be expensive," The driver informed. I gritted my teeth. A bus wouldn't be helpful in this case, since buses are public transportation methods and usually only stop at places in the city, and not in neighborhoods. I had to ride the taxi, or I would end up  _walking_ there. And I didn't ever want to walk. "It's fine," i said in a pained voice. "Are you sure?" He asked me, seeming to pick up my restrained voice. I nodded violently, and the taxi started back up on the road.

Ah... What a big house.

I had finally arrived at the house I was going to take care of.

It was massive. And when I say massive, I  **MEAN** massive.

It was like some sort of mansion. I internally groaned. If it was a huge house, then that meant there would be many rooms. If there were many rooms, then that would mean more work for me. I wanted to dial Minyoung and tell her I didn't want to do it. But then that would just be being a horrible friend, since I had already promised I would do it for her. I knew I was being stupid in agreeing with her little compromise. Sure, I would earn money from this, but for all I know, it could be  _torture_ to be the caretaker. Not to mention I would have to supervise  _nine_ children. I squared my shoulders and prepped myself.

I confidently walked toward the door, dragging my suitcase behind me. I rung the doorbell, and there could be hollering heard from inside.

"The doorbell rang!" One announced.

The thundering of footsteps could be well heard as a group of people recklessly made their way to the door. I flinched at the booming sound of the syncopated footsteps against the hardwood floor. There were screams audible from inside the house that could probably be heard from five miles away. I grimaced at the electrifying sound, plugging my ears to deafen the ruckus. The door was whipped open, and in front of me stood nine  **grown** **boys.**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DISCLAIMER:  
> Any phone numbers or address I insert into this story ARE NOT real!


	3. H and S

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hm..  
> Maybe they aren't that bad.

I gasped.

_Boys?!_

Did Minyoung lie to me? Or maybe she was just so clueless she forgot?

I was stunned at the appearance of the nine boys. They stared at me curiously, looking me up and down as if they had never seen a girl's presence ever in their life. They examined me from head to toe, some squinting to catch the details. Meanwhile, I was still in disbelief.  _Boys_ were what I had to deal with for a month? I already had a pretty negative impression of them after listening into the annoying commotion they had created. And that was a pretty bad thing, considering I thought positively of everyone. I wanted  **out** but I knew I couldn't bail the job I had signed up for anymore. If I did, Minyoung would most likely never forgive me until we were old and decaying.

I squirmed uncomfortably under the intense gazes of the nine.

"Is... Your dad here?" I meekly managed to utter to them. As if they were cued, they all glanced at each other in unison. "Yeah, why?" One of them inquired skeptically. "I need to talk to him," I summarized vaguely. He was still suspicious of me, eyeing me warily. " _Dad!_ " Another one with a rather loud voice called out behind the row of boys. "Hm?" A familiar voice hummed. "There's a visitor! She's looking for you!" He proclaimed.

Some rustling could be heard before a man dressed in a plaid shirt and khakis emerged from behind a flower-printed wall. He was quite handsome despite his aging hair and the distinguished wrinkles bordering his eyes. A woman trailed after the male, wearing an elegant dress that had splashes of colors on it. She was dazzling as well. It wasn't a surprise they married.

I bowed to the two adults. The nine boys separated into two sections, beaming at their parents brightly. "Hello. I'm..." I faltered.  _Right. I'm Minyoung._ "Yoon Minyoung." I extended a hand for them to shake. "Ah! Minyoung! I've heard a lot about you. You're very pretty," The woman complimented, clasping her hands together in joy. The temperature in my cheeks heightened, and the reddening hue of them showed it. "Thank you," I smiled shyly. Being complimented by such a beautiful person made me feel so triumphant.

The man shook my hand firmly before letting go. "Thanks for coming! My boys will show you around the house. You should get to know them better too, since you'll be staying with them for a month. Don't worry though, we'll definitely let you use the guest room. Please discipline them. My wife and I are too kind to do that, so they're kind of spoiled." The nine boys began complaining, producing whining noises. The man chose to ignore the compiled complaints and continued with a smile, "They can't really take care of themselves. They're  _very_ energetic. Please bear with them. They're not bad children... Just...  _Troublesome._ The youngest is seventeen, so you should understand that he's quite the rebellious one. Well, all of them are."

The woman chuckled in agreement. I sheepishly laughed along with them, not knowing what to say. "A  _ **girl**_ is going to be living with us? No way. That's like... ILLEGAL!" One of the boys gawked. "I know, right? That's not fair. I thought we would have the house to ourselves," Another moaned in dismay. I contained my irritation. Only fifteen minutes in, and I'm already getting aggravated. This was getting off to a bad start. I hope I don't get fired if I start yelling.

The man sighed. "Come inside."

I nodded thankfully and stepped inside the house, the refreshing air engulfing me and cooling my hot skin down. I scanned my surroundings, in awe by the architecture of the house and the decorations. "So cool..." I whispered in bewilderment. "Thanks," The woman smiled at me, catching what I said. I nodded to her with speckles of embarrassment and continued letting my eyes explore the interior until we stopped at the stairway. While I was being guided to the flight of stairs, the boys were sneakily slinking away, not wanting to be the ones to give me a tour of the house. Well, I couldn't necessarily blame them. I would also feel very awkward and uncertain if a stranger (that was the opposite gender of me) randomly popped up of the blue and declared they would be in possession of the house for a month.

"Dears, what are you doing?" The woman asked in a honey-coated, yet icy, voice. The nine boys halted in their tracks and rigidly turned their heads to the two adults. "Crap," I overheard one mutter. I suppressed a laugh as I watched the scene unfold before me. Eight of the nine boys all snapped their head to one of them that seemed to be poised as their "leader". "What do you want me to do?" The male frowned and gazed at his siblings boring their eyes into him. " _Sacrifice,_ " A boy with albino white hair hissed through clenched teeth. The first boy seemed mortified by the second male's response. I assumed this particular scene had occurred before.

The woman and man were standing side-by-side, leaning against the railing of the staircase and just observing them from that position. I suspected they were used to the boys' squabbling. I honestly felt bad for the parents, having to deal with nine boisterous  _and_ immature kids. Maybe this was going to be more amusing than I thought it'd be. At least I won't be extremely unentertained for the next few weeks. To break the boys' quarreling, I spoke up, "Who's going to show me around?" My question interfered with the argument between the nine people that was gradually increasing in volume. It gave me a headache; I had to stop them eventually, anyway.

"Ah, right!" The dad snapped his fingers, remembering. "How about picking two yourself?" He suggested. "Why two?" I voiced. "They're rather awkward when meeting new people they don't know by themselves. If they're together, then they might be a bit more expressive. You'd also have the opportunity of knowing them and their personalities better," The man replied while flashing me a hearty grin.  _I can already tell they're really loud..._ I found myself thinking in my head. Even so, I nodded, recognizing his motive. I whipped around to face the group of boys, who had quieted down. Though I could still hear some of them quietly insulting one another in low voices. I almost broke my composure and start cackling over what some of them had retorted at one another. They were indeed ridiculously hilarious.

I calmed myself down. I better not get worked up now, or I might be blabbering my head off later. I usually became very hyperactive once I got excited from the start.

"I choose..."

I took in a deep breath.

"You." I pointed to a male with a reddish brown hair shade that was obviously dyed. He seemed to be the calmest out of all of them, considering he didn't really join in on the obnoxious noise they make. Sometimes he would spout out random noises that sounded similar to a dinosaur's roar (except more quieter and cuter). It made me feel as if he was one of the child-like ones that needed to be protected at all costs. When I jerked a finger at him, he raised his eyebrows in exclamation. "Me?" He echoed. "Yeah, you. Come here," I couldn't help but chuckle when he smiled from ear-to-ear as he bounded over to me.

"Hi," He timidly said to me with a shy sort of smile. "I'm Y/N," I introduced my name. Then I backtracked.  _Whoops._ "I, I mean-!" I raised the pitch of my voice, my volume also growing louder. My cheeks became dusted with a pink tint. Whenever I felt embarrassed about something, I had a tendency to raise my voice like that. It was humiliating, to say the least. I hushed my voice to my regular volume and continued covering up for my mistake. "I'm Minyoung.. I meant I was Minyoung." The boy was softly giggling until I finished my commencement of my introduction. "I'm Kim Seungmin," He said, still unable to get over my voice crack.

I rolled my eyes at him, then moved on to choosing my second companion. Seungmin leaned over to me and whispered into my ear, "Choose Hwang Hyunjin." I screwed up my face in confusion. "Who?" I turned my face to him. He glanced towards the group of boys, arching his head over their heads to see every single person. "Him." He beckoned to one of the boys who was loudly laughing with the boy with another boy with similar raven-black hair. Someone placed a solid hand on my shoulder, and I jumped out of surprise.

I turned, and behind me stood the two adults. "Sorry about that," The man warmly smiled at me, faint dimples indenting his cheeks. "No, I'm sorry," I rubbed the back of my head. I felt air lap at my arm, and I flicked my eyes to my right. Seungmin was departing from his spot next to me and was adorably waddling over to the two boys that were goofing around and hysterically laughing with their (yes, I know it's shocking coming from me) rather cute eye smiles. My attention averted back to the two parents. The woman said in that sweet, melodic voice of hers. "We'll be downstairs cooking, if you ever need us." "Oh, no. I can cook! Leave it to me. You should rest," I shook my head. The woman sent me a grateful, thin-lipped smile. "Thank you. We appreciate your help, darling. See you soon!" She left rather quickly, her husband following her into what seemed like the living room.

"Okay, what? Who's Hyunjin again?" I turned back to the boys, who were occupied with hitting each other or hugging one another. It was a very... Strange scene, but I felt like I would get used to their skinship soon. "That's me!" Hyunjin raised his hand and stepped forward. Seungmin walked behind Hyunjin, poking his head out from behind his back. "Can you show me your rooms first?" I requested. Ah, up close, they were pretty good-looking. I felt entranced by their naturally stunning appearances, from their eyes to the shape of their lips. Hyunjin helped snap me out of that enchantment when he said, "Sure. There's a lot of guest rooms, so you need to pick out of one of them."

I wasn't surprised. Having a huge house like this could result in multiple extra rooms. "Um, some of our rooms are dirty..." Seungmin fidgeted anxiously with a small smile. Hyunjin nodded in agreement. "Some of them have especially embarrassing stuffed animals or figurines, so feel free to laugh," Hyunjin remarked with a laugh. "Thanks for the heads up," I chuckled. I was getting used to the boys' presence now, even if I had only met two out of nine of the members, and had only been here for about an hour now.

We headed up the stairs, Hyunjin childishly running ahead on all fours like some four-legged animal. Seungmin later joined him, laughing and running up the stairs, sometimes slipping and skidding down a few steps, bumping into my legs. For some reason, I felt like I had known them for a long time after seeing them horse around like this. When they would crash into my legs or skim by them, I would give them a rough nudge with my foot and keep them going. Sometimes I would cast a glance down at the first floor to make sure the seven others wouldn't be causing some catastrophe, though I was almost one hundred percent positive they would. They seemed like those annoyingly and crazily loud guys at school you would always see getting in trouble by the teachers.

I was reminded of Minyoung from some of them because of how impulsive or talkative they were. She would easily blend in with them if she cut her hair short, I think. That would be funny to see.

The three of us arrived at one room. "This is Felix's room. Lee Felix," Hyunjin explained, signaling to the entrance. "Who?" I asked, clueless. "The blondie. The guy that died his hair white and is terrible at Korean. I mean, Minho already tried teaching him..." Hyunjin began rambling about background information of Felix. Like how he was Australian and was abandoned by his parents when he was only four years old. Some details were a bit too private that I didn't think I should be hearing it without Felix's consent. Nonetheless, I learned that Felix loved memes and was the ultimate dabber of the house, which I found very cringe-worthy. But I mean, I wasn't one to judge. I had my own cringey moments that were to laugh at- especially my yearbook pictures. I shuddered at the thought of them.

I also learned that Hyunjin would insult people without really realizing until someone got mad at him for it. Seungmin also was the type of person to just sit back, relax, and watch everything while laughing at the idiotic people. I didn't think from the beginning that he was someone that was  _involved._ I wished he was.

We entered the room, and surprisingly, it wasn't too messy. The bed sheets were crumbled and piled up, and there were pillows scattered on the floor. There were several stuffed animals on shelves as well as some medals. "Whoa, he won stuff? Not bad!" I exclaimed with a broad smile. Seungmin and Hyunjin exchanged looks at one another before bursting out into a bout of laughter. "What? What's so funny?" I asked with a frown creasing my face, unsure if what I had said was weird. "I can't believe Felix still has them! I thought Mom said to throw them out..." Seungmin choked out in between laughs.

Hyunjin was finally able to calm himself, but still had a wide grin remaining. "Medals? Ha! They're  ** _participation awards._** " After hearing that statement, I began laughing as well until I was rolling along the ground, clutching my throbbing stomach that hurt from laughing so much. "Hilarious, right? And by the way," Seungmin started. "They're from 2008," He finished, his voice cracking out as he couldn't help but breakdown into laughter.

We exited the room, and there was one right next to it. "Here, is Changbin's room. A guy that says 'I love dark' all the time but is actually the aegyo king," Seungmin chuckled. I could actually imagine it. "So, who is he?" I inquired. "It's kind of hard to describe him, since everyone except Felix has somewhat black-ish hair. Changbin has a slim face, has one ring earring and a dangling one on the other side," Hyunjin described. "Ah.. I might have an idea who it is," I nodded to them before we entered Changbin's room. "I might have a hard time memorizing-"

I interrupted myself when I walked into the room. "Why is this room so clean?" I gasped. "Eh, more like Mom did it for him. It was an absolute mess with black clothes lying around the room. She knew you were coming," Hyunjin said, shrugging. "And that's Gyu, his favorite plushie in the world that he can't sleep without. He literally hugs it and drools over it while sleeping. I've seen it myself... It's not a pretty sight," Hyunjin continued, waving his hand to a small Snorlax plushie that was kept on a shelf. "Wow, very... Cute for someone that 'loves dark'," I commented with a chuckle of amusement. "Can't believe he goes around bragging he loves dark anyway," Seungmin said with a simple, disappointed shake of his head.

"Next room!" Hyunjin ushered the two of us out of the room and to the next one. "This is mine. I'm pretty proud of mine. It's not dirty," He proudly crowed. I laughed at his self-compliment. I couldn't deny it though. His room was cleaned up and organized. This room wouldn't be much of a problem for me. Seungmin whined, "I'm also clean too!" I swatted my hand at him, nodding. "Alright, alright.. You act just like a toddler," I teasingly joked. He huffed and folded his arms across his chest crossly but soon loosened up and smiled at me brightly with his teeth showing.

There were some finishing touches that only his mom could've done, like adding fancy curtains, quilts, and more.

_It's definitely as beautiful as him. Gosh he and the room are gorgeous._

"W-What?" Seungmin gasped and Hyunjin choked on air.

I looked at them weirdly. "What's wrong?"

I studied their faces, and Hyunjin's cheeks were an angry red color.

"Wait..."

I paused.

"Did I say that out loud?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The "rooms" of Stray Kids are only based off my imagination. They are not real descriptions of their rooms, and they certainly don't have separate rooms (based off my knowledge from videos).


	4. War

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "NO FOOD!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING:  
> Curse words. Read at your own risk.

"Oh... I..." Hyunjin suddenly became quiet. His cheeks flushed and I could tell he was becoming shy upon the compliment. Hastily, I said, "Pretend you didn't hear that." Seungmin had this goofy smile glued onto his face. I could tell he was going to tease me about it later. I rolled my eyes in exasperation towards him. "Shut up," I mumbled, almost inaudibly. Hyunjin opened his mouth to say something but clamped his mouth shut after thinking about it. I crossed my arms and marched out of the room. "Come on. You still have more rooms to show me," I reminded the two, causing Seungmin and Hyunjin to scramble forward and catch up with my stride.

"Here's my room," Seungmin announced, swinging open the door of the next room arranged to be in front of Hyunjin's. There were banners of a band named Day6, and simple yet cute decorations. I approved of his room with a nod of my head and a wide smile. "It's pretty neat," I commented, allowing my eyes to roam the room. It was way cleaner than my room for sure. My room was a hot mess with dirty clothes lying around.

Hyunjin perked up again. "Oi, did you know that Seungmin is like,  _obsessed_ with Day6? He's a hardcore fanboy.. He even jams out to it at 1:00 in the morning." He giggled. Seungmin delivered Hyunjin an embarrassed slap on the back. Hyunjin let out a yelp of agony. "Hey! What was that for?" He complained. The reddish-haired boy didn't reply, and instead glared at his sibling. I laughed softly at them but continued to explore the house. I had gone in and out of 20 rooms by the time it was afternoon.

Most of the boys' rooms were messy and disastrous. Scarcely would I see almost perfect rooms that I wouldn't have any trouble cleaning. I had memorized all of the boys' names after reciting them more than fifty times with the assistance of Seungmin and Hyunjin, whom I have gotten closer to throughout the survey of the colossal house.

I was exhausted and fatigued, my abundant amount of energy being sucked out of me like a vacuum. I hunched my back over and slowly made my way down the stairs, both hands supporting my body by grabbing onto the railings on either side of me. I felt as if I had climbed up a steep mountain and had to hike back down again. I wasn't athletic, nor energetic, and my apartment wasn't as lengthy or complex as theirs, so this exploration of the building really seeped me of my energy. I was surprised Seungmin and Hyunjin were still yapping away in my ears, occasionally bickering over some disagreement between them that I didn't have the vitality to stop.

Once we reached the first floor, Seungmin and Hyunjin hit off running. Hyunjin was chasing Seungmin, hollering at him and spitting out a few curse words here and there. I winced at the vulgar words. When I reminded myself that I would have to endure the screaming for a month, I wanted to melt into a puddle of fluids. I didn't want to supervise anyone over the summer, especially not nine reckless boys that would summon the demon hiding within me.  _God, I'm 100 percent sure that they would be the ones to make me scream at them._ I thought in my head with a grunt.

I found the parents sitting together on a couch, watching an episode of what seemed to be a television series. I approached them hesitantly, tapping their shoulders. The woman turned around. "Yes?" She peeped. "I'm.. Going to make lunch now, but I need to know where all the ingredients and utensils are, including a pan," I shifted from one foot to the other. I really didn't want to go rummaging through someone else's property without being instructed on what was what and where something was. The woman nodded to me and gave a pat on the shoulder to her husband before she hauled herself to her feet. "Here, follow me," She beckoned as she gracefully glided over to the kitchen.

It was ridiculously clean. Nothing was out of place (at least in my opinion) and it was like the  _perfect_ dream house kitchen you would want. I pictured my apartment's tiny kitchen with all the ingredients piled on top of one another and the pots and pans all stacked on top of each other in the living room. I shook my head, removing the image from my head. My apartment was pathetic compared to their grand and glorious house.

I followed the woman into the kitchen. "Excuse me, miss-" I started. Before I could finish my sentence, the woman chimed in. "Oh, don't call me miss. Just call me comfortably! My name is Shin Hyesoo. You can call me by my real name or just call me unnie*." I nodded to her. I wasn't too familiar with her, so I was unsure if I should really call her by her name. Unnie was too awkward for me to say, especially since she was way older than me. She looked young and lively, but it still would haunt me if I was ever to call her that honorific.

"What are you planning to make?" Hyesoo asked me. "Probably omelets," I responded. She nodded, smiling with a twinkle in her eyes. "I haven't made omelets in such a long time.. It would be interesting to see how you would make them. Some of them prefer spicy ones," Hyesoo told me. I cocked my head to the side. "Spicy?" I repeated. "Yeah. Some of my boys have some obsession with eating everything spicy," She chuckled with mirth. "Who?" I prompted. Upon my question, she began listing the boys that liked spicy foods. I noted the names mentally, making sure she repeated them so I could get everything correct. I wouldn't want them whining about eating non-spicy foods. That would be such a pain to deal with.

"Just dig around. I don't mind! It's 11:00 right now, so take your time. No one's rushing you... Except..." Hyesoo turned around to see nine hopeful boys watching them. "Except them, of course," I finished for her, laughing. "Yeah. I'll make sure they won't be in your way, but Jaehyun and I have to leave somewhere. We might be late for lunch, so save us some," The woman said. I assumed Jaehyun was her husband. "Ah, alright. I'll make sure to save a lot. And don't worry about them. I have my own way to discipline them," I confidently said to her, smirking, my voice dripping with malice. The nine boys must've sensed the dark aura radiating from me, since they had retreated into the living room.

"Gosh, she's really scary," I heard Jeongin, the youngest, remark.

"Scarier than Mom," Felix's deep voice resonated.

"Mom isn't  _too_ scary," Minho said.

Hyesoo stormed up to them, planting hands on Minho and Felix's shoulders. "You want me to be scary? I can be scary," She growled at them. The boys shrieked and scurried way, abandoning Minho and Felix, who were unable to writhe away from her iron grip. "I'm sorry!" Felix cried out, struggling to be free. Minho nodded vigorously. "Yeah! We'll be good kids," He promised. She continued being stubborn until Minho and Felix pouted and showed her the effective puppy eyes. "Oh, fine!" She surrendered and let the boys run back to their brothers.  _If I was her, I wouldn't let go,_ I thought. Hyesoo turned to face me again and said, "I'm too soft on them, aren't I?" I didn't really want to discourage her or make her disappointed, so I lied, saying, "No! You're doing well." My left eye twitched, just like it always did whenever I happened to tell a lie. It was a strange reflex, and I didn't appreciate its existence at all.

I whipped around and let my back face the mom so she wouldn't catch my twitchy eye. "Okay. I'll start cooking now," I ambled over to the sink as I spoke, washing my hands thoroughly with soap (SOPE) and water. "Minyoung!" I heard Seungmin frantically shout to me. At first, I didn't respond, but after three calls, I finally remembered that I wasn't Y/N, but Minyoung. I finished washing my hands and swiveled around, only to be met in the face with a ball.

Silence enveloped the kitchen.

"Oh dear," Hyesoo gasped, covering her mouth with her fingers. Seungmin crept forward, peering around the corner with an expression of horror shadowing his face. Woojin flinched as the ball dropped from my face and bounced off the ground. Chan grimaced, his nose scrunching up. "Yeahhh, we're screwed," Jisung whispered. Changbin nodded. "Should we run?" He asked furthermore. Everyone looked at one another and nodded before hurriedly dispersing, each boy jogging into a room or slipping behind chairs.

My fingers curled tightly into fists, my knuckles whitening. My upper lip arched up into a threatening, terrifying snarl. "Darling, let's go now, shall we?" Hyesoo urgently suggested to Jaehyun, who was oblivious of the entire situation. He had been too busy watching hilarious scenes of a reality show to notice my silent fuming. The woman ducked her head behind Jaehyun, who was being shoved away from the living room and out the front door.

Once they were gone, I made my move. "Who threw the ball?!" I screeched, clearly infuriated. I snatched up the ball and stomped around the house, slamming open doors to rooms they might've been hiding in. No one spoke- they were probably too scared to.

"It was Changbin!" One of them, I think Jeongin, yelled.

Changbin was pushed out into the open. Once he stumbled into view, I chucked the ball at his face. I was shocked at my own accuracy after watching the ball rocket through the air and smack him squarely in the face. Maybe it was adrenaline that drove me to hit his face with such precision. I snapped my fingers and pumped my fists into the air. "BULLS-EYE!" I cheered. Changbin shouted in pain, clutching his face in his hands. I heard everyone that I could hear explode into an uncontrollable fit of laughter. "Revenge is bittersweet," I snickered before dashing away. "I'm going to  _murder_ you!" I heard him warn. "If you do, you won't be getting any food!" I called back behind my shoulder as I ran into the kitchen.

"Oh,  _fuck._ Fine! Anything for food!" Changbin surrendered. Everyone revealed themselves one by one, assuming it was safe.

**Not!**

I had retrieved the ball already and began to fling it to the closest person, Woojin. He yelped as it ricocheted off of him and into Felix, who grunted as it flew right off of him and crashed into Jisung. I stuck my tongue out at them and flipped my hair behind my shoulder majestically. "Take that!" I immaturely declared.  _Wow, I sure am becoming childish. It's all because of them, jeez..._

They began laughing and mocking one another, huddling up in the middle of the hallway and scheming something. I didn't know what they were doing. I was occupied with finding the right ingredients for creating a delicious omelet. I was too worried about making it perfect to realize what the  **district of nine** were going to do. I hummed a small tune, remembering how I hit Changbin right in the face. I couldn't help but laugh as I opened drawers for spoons and cabinets for pans. I wandered around the kitchen to search for pans and fished through the fridge for eggs, ham, and vegetables.

Meanwhile, Hyunjin had been sent (by  **ROCK** paper scissors) to throw the ball back at me.

But he didn't want to, knowing that I wouldn't offer him food or treat him well if he aimed the ball at my head.

Because of his siblings' evil persuasion, he managed to throw the ball full force at my back. I stumbled forward, my stomach hitting the edge of the counter. I coughed as the edge sank into my flesh. I quickly turned around with a rather large and dangerous spoon held in my right hand. My eyes were ignited with anger. "I let you guys off! You really want to start World War 3 here?" I snapped at them. I charged forward, tackling Hyunjin and causing him to be knocked down to the ground. While pinning Hyunjin onto the cold wooden floor, everyone else dispersed and separated, screaming for their lives as if knowing what was going to be their ultimate fate.

"Hyunjin, I know you're a good kid. Don't listen to-"

I was cut off when Felix threw himself onto me, making me topple sideways and off of Hyunjin. "Yay! Thanks, Felix! Thank you for the sacrifice! It wasn't in vain! Minyoung is  **super** heavy.  **WATCH OUT!** (*cue district 9*)" Hyunjin celebrated his freedom as he ran away from the scene. I wrestled Felix, cursing at him in my broken English. "You!" I exclaimed in English with my inevitable Korean accent. "Felix!" I snarled, pronouncing his name with Korean syllables. "Hi," Felix laughed at my terrible English, using his strength to flip me over onto my back. "I... I... Hate you!" I finally managed to find the English words to express my hatred towards him. I pummeled his stomach with my socked feet. It was a struggle to throw him off, but I barely achieved it. "Bye bye!" I waved to Felix, who was groaning.

"Hey, where did everyone go?" I whined.

"Cricket, cricket, cricket," Jeongin mimicked the sounds of awkwardness, leading me to find his location. He was young, so I didn't really want to hurt him. He was cute. He didn't do much harm anyway. I simply tickled him, causing him to laugh out of control and thrash around, attempting to get me off of him. I teasingly pinched his cheeks before moving on to my next victim. "Come on, guys. It's no fun to hide," I said. No answer.

I finally thought of a different idea.

"NO FOOD!"

Everyone came pouring out of their hiding places. Ah, so that was the key to luring them out! I laughed internally at how ridiculous yet funny it was.

"So dumb," I commented before I swiftly ran over to them, gently punching each of them in different parts of the body. "Do we really get no food?" Chan frowned as he rubbed his sore arm where I had hit him. "Nah, it was a joke. Maybe Hyunjin won't, because he called me  _heavy_ ," I said, indicating it to Hyunjin. "But it's true!" He pouted, jutting his bottom lip out and showing me the puppy eyes. "Yeah, that trick doesn't work on me," I sighed and flicked his forehead. "Ow!" He cupped his forehead with his hands, shutting one eye to hold in the pain. "Shut up," I cautioned him.

"Now let me cook!"

~

I finally finished cooking 13 omelets. Nine for the boys, two for the parents, and one for me. It had taken longer than usual because they were very annoying, screaming in my ear or fighting one another physically and verbally. Still, I wasn't as lonely as I would have been at the apartment. I still had conflicting thoughts about staying here, though. Half of me didn't want to stay because of how aggressive and annoying they were, but half of me didn't want to bail out because of the money and the company.

I shrugged off my thoughts. One of them was burnt, but I covered the burnt marks up with a mass of ketchup and handed it to Hyunjin, who was too clueless to know it was overcooked. All of us dug in. The boys were still loud at the table. And here I thought, believing they would have good table manners.

I groaned in agitation when Minho squirted ketchup into Woojin's cheeks. "Hey! I'm older than you!" Woojin lectured Minho. But even as he said that, he childishly rubbed ketchup onto Minho's nose. "Hey!" Minho yelled in a high-pitched voice. Minho stole Woojin's plate and licked his omelet. Woojin stomped on Minho's foot, causing Minho to drop the plate onto the table. I was surprised the plate didn't break after the impact. "Minyoung, Minho licked my food! He's so gross!" Woojin complained to me. I wanted to yank out my hair.

At the same time, Jeongin was being squeezed to death by Chan. Jeongin looked like he was being suffocated, so I had to pry him out of Chan's arms. "Keep your  _fucking_ hands to yourself," I lowly warned Chan, who shrank back cowardly.

As I got rid of that problem, more started to arise.

"Goodness gracious... This is one hell of a journey."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * Unnie (언니) is what younger girls call older girls. This fanfiction is based in South Korea, so this honorific is normal. I am not using this to offend any Koreans or Korean culture because I am Korean myself, and have used this title several times during visits to Korea. I have also added that honorific to make that particular scene more awkward and corny than anything else, haha. It's more for comedy... Please do not misunderstand my usage of it.
> 
> Also, in this fanfiction, you (Y/N) are a native Korean and are about as good at English as Hyunjin or Woojin (Which isn't that good. Sorry hehe). It's to make things more realistic. I don't really like fanfictions that are based in Korea but have the main character that is fluent in basically every language. Let's change things up a bit, shall we?


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